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Both of these challenger banks are new to the US, with N26 available to US customers now and Revolut planning to launch soon, with a waitlist open. Which one you should choose depends on how you spend and manage your money.
Revolut vs. N26: Side-by-side comparison
Revolut offers a free account as well as two different premium accounts. At the time of writing N26 offers one account type. The following chart compares the N26 account against the free standard Revolut account.
| Revolut | N26 | |
|---|---|---|
| Fees and charges | $0 | $0 |
| Domestic ATM charges | Free withdrawals up to $300/month, then 2% of the withdrawal amount | 2 free withdrawals per month, then $2 per withdrawal |
| Foreign ATM charges | Free withdrawals up to $300/month, then 2% of the withdrawal amount | 2% of the withdrawal amount |
| Send money to friends | Free to anyone with a Revolut account | Free to anyone with an N26 account |
| Transfer money internationally | Transfer to 29 currencies with a 0.5% fee for anything above $6,500 each month plus a flat markup on weekends and in certain currencies | N/A |
| Spending insights | Shows spending by category, merchant, country, and month | Offers insights into where you spend your money, along with monthly reports help understand your spending habits |
| Freeze your card | Yes: Touch of a button in app | Yes: Touch of a button in app |
| Interest | None | None |
| Savings goals | Set budgets in the app | Spaces feature lets you open subaccounts to stash your money away |
| Visualization | Spending graphs show which days you’ve spent most/least money | Monthly spending statistics shown in pie chart |
| Foreign exchange fees | 0.5% for spending more than a certain unspecified amount each month, plus a flat markup on weekends and for some currencies | None |
Revolut vs. N26: The verdict
Using the app
In terms of the actual app, there’s not much separating these two. Both Revolut and N26 offer stylish graphics and spending insights, categorizing your transactions and showing you how much you’ve spent in a category or at a particular shop. Budgeting with both apps is easy and structured, although N26‘s Spaces feature might put them above Revolut in this respect.
With Spaces you can open subaccounts to store away money for a particular saving goal.
Using your card abroad
When compared with using your traditional bank card, both Revolut and N26 will save you more money abroad. Revolut is probably the better option out of the two, though.
- Card transaction fees. N26 doesn’t charge any foreign exchange fees, while Revolut charges 0.5% for spending more than a certain unspecified amount each month, plus a flat markup on weekends and for some currencies.
- Number of countries. With Revolut, you can take money out in 150 different countries. N26 doesn’t say in how many countries its card can be used.
- ATM withdrawals abroad. Revolut lets you withdraw $300 a month at foreign ATMs, but charges a 2% fee after that. N26 charges 2% of the withdrawal amount.
Security
N26 is FDIC-insured through its partner bank, Axos Bank. Revolut partners with FDIC-insured bank Metropolitan Commercial Bank to protect funds on its prepaid debit cards.Video: Alex Weber, head of international markets, on why N26 is different
Bottom line
Both N26 and Revolut offer consumers a fully in-app way to control their finances. But they’re also very new: N26 launched in the US in July 2019, and as of August 2019 Revolut has not yet launched in the US.
If you’re considering switching banks, compare other checking accounts to N26 and Revolut before making a decision.
Ask an Expert
ATM withdrawals abroad. Revolut lets you withdraw $300 a month at foreign ATMs, but charges a 2% fee after that. N26 charges $2 plus 2% of the withdrawal amount.
That’s not true ! N26 charges 1,7% of the withdrawal amount, without extra 2 $ !!!
Mischa,
Thanks for reaching out to us. The 1.7% is the percentage amount for N26’s EU account holders. US account holders have a 2% charge. We also doubled checked N26’s extra $2 fee. Its website still mentions the $2 fee, but an N26 customer service rep confirmed that there’s actually no $2 extra, just 2%. Hopefully N26 will update its website soon. We’ve updated our reviews. Thanks for pointing that out.